


Interlude: A Man Like Him

by freezerjerky



Series: The Passage of Time [7]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-31
Updated: 2016-10-31
Packaged: 2018-08-28 03:14:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8429344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/freezerjerky/pseuds/freezerjerky
Summary: On one hand, Lance is exactly the type of man Gwen would like to settle down with some day. On the other hand, there's a logical part of her brain that screams "this is going to combust" when the guy she's dating calls her his girlfriend within two weeks of knowing her.





	

**Author's Note:**

> The proper formal introduction of Gwen to the friend group- both she and Elyan will be intregal members later on, especially as they're two of my favorites.
> 
> Any stories that do not focus primarily on Merlin, Arthur, or someone's relationship with either/both of the two will have the "Interlude" prefix as I'll be exploring a variety of characters, pairings, etc.

On one hand, Lance is exactly the type of man Gwen would like to settle down with some day. On the other hand, there's a logical part of her brain that screams "this is going to combust" when the guy she's dating calls her his girlfriend within two weeks of knowing her. She's willing to give it a go, though, because she's never really the whole whirlwind romance thing.

She's invited to meet some of his friends on a Saturday afternoon when some of them get together to play football in Regent's Park. The temptation to play is palpable for a few minutes before she gets caught up in conversation with Merlin, one of her favourite customers at the bakery, who's opted to stay on the sidelines.

"This is Freya," Merlin says, gesturing to the woman sitting beside him who politely looks up from her book. "And this is Mordred." He gestures towards a young man with curly hair and a warm smile. Collectively they look like a small family of dark haired hipsters.

"I'm Gwen." She waves at them. "I hope you don't mind sharing some of these pastries I brought with me, I sort of wanted to impress Lance's friends but they're very into chasing after the ball."

Merlin laughs and pats the blanket beside him. Gwen sits beside him, setting down the box of the pastries and adjusting her skirt. None of them hesitate to dig in.

"So are you all dating one of these...athletes?" she asks, her tone teasing.

Freya blushes, only a bit, and points towards Will. "That one's mine. Will."

"Very handsome." Gwen smiles at her. "And I already know your Arthur, of course. How about you, Mordred?"

"No, I'm just tagging along with Freya. We live together."

"Also he's our friend," Merlin adds. "He forgets that bit sometimes."

Gwen laughs along and makes sure Mordred doesn't feel guilty about taking the pastry that's clearly his favourite.

 

After the footie match, they all go out for drinks. Apparently drinks are a common thing among this crowd, led by their fearless leader, Gwaine, the one with the ridiculously well kept hair. Gwen likes Lance's friends and she gets along with them easily. They feel like the type of people who would be her friends if she spent more time making effort. After drinking Leon, the curly haired lawyer, under the table, she heads home with Lance.

They're both too drunk to do anything; they haven't done anything yet anyway. Lance says he's asked her over because it's just that little bit closer to the pub (and it is.) He means just that. She borrows one of his t-shirts to sleep and it feels comfortable.

"You look adorable like that," Lance says, admiring her. "Are you sure you don't want a pair of bottoms with that?"

"Trying to cover me up, are you?" she teases, climbing into bed beside him. 

"No, just want to make sure you're warm to sleep."

"Don't two bodies conserve heat when they're more naked?"

"Smart, adorable, and sexy. Be still my heart."

She smirks and pulls up the blanket. "You just wait until tomorrow morning."

"What's tomorrow morning?"

"Well, I've taken the morning off of work..."

Lance grins at her then turns off the light. The next morning they shag and afterwards Lance serves her breakfast in bed.

 

She feels foolish coming home in her clothes from the night before. She hadn't done that since Uni, but it seemed a bit too soon to be borrowing Lance's clothes, and she was dressed modestly enough. Only she knew she'd been wearing the things yesterday. Once in her flat, she puts on the kettle and prepares herself for a quiet Sunday in, maybe looking up some new recipes or reading a good book.

With her tea, she moves to settle comfortably in the living room. The issue is that there appears to be a person sleeping on her couch. The initial shock fades and after her first noise of surprise, Gwen shakes her head.

"Elyan, you know you're supposed to call before you show up here."

The figure on the couch groans, then sits up. Elyan yawns, then offers Gwen a smile.

"Wanted to give my sister a surprise, is there anything wrong with that?"

Gwen rolls her eyes, and moves to the empty space on the couch.

"Of course," he continues, "my sister didn't come back last night at all so I don't know what she was up to."

"I stayed at my boyfriend's because it was late."

"You've got a boyfriend? And you haven't told me?"

"You were running around Thailand, I figured I would tell you once you were home next. I loved your article, by the way, about the markets. Very interesting read."

Elyan smiles at her, then puts his arm around her, pulling her close. He's not around much, but he always seems genuinely glad to be around his sister.

"Thanks, Gwennie. Now where's my cup of tea?"

 

They go for a walk that afternoon, catching each other up on their lives. Elyan's always so busy traveling and writing that he's scarcely got the time to be home. Not that he has a home, because his London home is Gwen's couch. She doesn't mind much, though, because it means she gets to see him as often as possible. When they've exhausted all the topics about his travel, they sit outside of a Pret and drink overpriced coffee and watch the people go by.

"So this boyfriend of yours, is he a good bloke?"

Gwen blows on her coffee to cool it down. "He is. He's a vet and a few years older, but not too old and right now he's out volunteering at an animal shelter."

"And are you in love, ready to settle down?" he teases.

"No!" She blushes. "We've only been seeing each other for a few weeks, I'm not ready for anything yet."

"But could you see yourself settling down with him?"

She deliberates, thinking about how lovely her morning was, how kind and courteous Lance is, how good he makes her feel. The most apt answer is a shrug.

"I'd like to be with a man like him, with him, but nothing's for certain, you know?"

Elyan gives her a wry smile and she protests, but they decide to stick to other topics.

**Author's Note:**

> Future Spoilers/Full disclosure: Gwen/Lance will not be an endgame pairing for this series


End file.
